Katie at the top of Cheyenne Rim
Go North Young Man.
Wait a second…
This morning Katie and I wanted to ride somewhere new – most of the mountain bike trails in Boulder county have been ridden too many times to county. To find some new trails we looked north, to the Soapstone Prairie Natural Area above Fort Collins. After an hour and a half drive, we arrived at the park gate and asked the ranger for an 8-10 mile loop recommendation. The ranger told us to try the Cheyenne Rim trail, a 15 mile round trip out and back. While not at all what we asked for, the colors were supposedly gorgeous so we agreed to try the trail.
Aside from the fighting the painfully strong winds, I really liked the trail. Of course with all the cacti it probably would be wise to have a selection of spare tubes. There were almost no people – across fifteen miles we saw only six other humans. The trail was a mixture double track and single track (really wide single track) and extremely smooth. So smooth that I could have easily taken my Jamis Supernova instead of my Trek Fuel EX 8. The trail had a long gradual climb on the undulating hills in the wide open expanse of plains (bring lots of water and sunblock). The park is a great place to take a new rider, as long as they have the endurance or you the will to turn around.
If you want a technical challenge, this trail is not for you. If you want epic climbs, this trail is not for you. So why did I like this trail? It was beautiful and beautifully relaxing. I spent the entire ride (downhill included) just cruising, looking at the scenery.
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